Running through Rainstorms
by Beautiful Allusion
Summary: A Jasper Hale and Angela Webber story. Angela has never ignored suffering and when she sees the lonesome Jasper her heart goes out to him. When Alice leaves and Jasper becomes tormented will Angela be able to save him from his heartbreak? first fanfic R
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Set during the start of eclipse but does not follow the plot line

Disclaimer: I do not own any characters from Stephanie Meyers Twilight saga, I do however own Paolo and Caleb 

Concerned for the Conversationless

Angela was never the kind of person to ignore human suffering, or suffering of any kind for that matter. Her parents had always raised her to help those in need, even if they seemed out of the reach of help. If it weren't for this, Angela never would have met _him_.

When Bella Swan had come to Forks, a new order emerged in the small high school all Forks teenagers attended. The untouchable Cullen family had finally broken out of their shell. Overlooking Edward's wrong judgments at the start of the previous year and the family's mysterious absences, Angela was able to make friends with almost all the Cullen clan, all except the ever distant Jasper.

While Angela's friendship with Alice had grown considerably over the past two years, Jasper never sat with the others, ate with them or spent any time with them whatsoever. His distance concerned Angela, even Rosalie and Emmett had graced the others with their presence yet Jasper still eluded all contact with anyone but his family. It was unnatural, and it made her feel uneasy how crumpled and isolated he always seemed.

Alice had never once mentioned Jaspers distance from the group, and she never seemed worried about it, yet Angela couldn't keep her mind off the brooding outsider. His distance was not only saved for the lunchtime rush of people and conversation, Angela's grades had allowed her to skip into a high level Literature and Mathematics class, both which she had with the always lonesome Jasper. In both classes he had none of his family, and he sat alone. It was almost as if no one but his family existed to him, and her concern gathered.

Every lunch, Angela would sit and observe Jaspers solitary habits, concern almost emanating from her mind, trying to break into the others, so she wouldn't be forced to handle the situation on her own. As if he knew exactly what she was thinking Edward pulled her aside from the lunch line, gently urging her toward the hallway.

"Ange, lately it seems you've been concerned for my brother." He stated it as a fact, and Angela felt absolutely no compulsion to say anything, it almost seemed as if Edward was trying to deter her from caring for the situation. "Jasper has always been somewhat distant from others, he's shy and quiet, you really don't need to worry yourself on his behalf." Edward glanced back at Jasper, who was watching their conversation intently through the doorway from his table.

Angela smiled, she would tell Edward what he wanted to hear, "Ok, I was just concerned that he misunderstood us, we don't mean to intentionally exclude him, thanks for talking to me." As if he could read minds Edward raised his eyebrows at her disbelievingly before walking away, he walked through the door and to Jaspers table where he muttered something, patting him on the back and walking away, momentarily Jaspers gaze flickered to her, and she was frozen to her spot in the doorway. She did not see hatred in his azure eyes, but she saw a chilling determination and encouragement that sent her heart fluttering in panic and caused her head to spin. When she regained control of her senses, she looked back over to Jaspers table, but he wasn't there.


	2. Chapter 2

Eyes of Ember

After her conversation with Edward, Angela was on her guard around him. He had the uncanny ability to read her like a book, as if he could see thoughts as clear as the words on the page of a novel. During literature and math, she watched Jasper quietly from afar, but during lunch she rehearsed _Romeo and Juliet_ in her head, over and over to avoid thinking of him.

The advanced class had only twenty-eight students, leaving two spots free, one next to Jasper and one next to Angela. Jasper may have been a solitary person, but Ange certainly was not. She hated being alone more than anything, and she hated seeing others alone and suffering. _It would not be selfish to kill two birds with one stone_ she thought, as she entered her maths class on Monday afternoon. True to form Jasper was in his usual seat to the left of the classroom, and she was late again. As she apologized to Mr. Kinnan, she walked determinedly to the left of the classroom and took the seat next to Jasper. She smiled at him, and he nodded impassively back. For the rest of the class, he did not acknowledge her at all. She felt lonelier than she had when she was all alone.

Literature followed much the same pattern, she showed up late as always, her other classes clashing with her advanced ones, and took the seat next to Jasper, who determinedly ignored her the whole lesson. _This may have been a bad idea_ she thought, radiating disappointment, discouragement, loneliness and sadness. She finished copying the assignment off the board and gathered her books quietly, she pushed her chair back, and just as she started to get up Jaspers voice stopped her.

"Um, Angela, you…uh…can I…thank…uh never mind, I'll see you next class." He said, grabbing his books and fleeing the classroom and her presence in an unusually fast manner. She was stunned. She had never imagined Jasper Hale to stutter or stammer, she had always thought he would know exactly what to say apparently she had thought wrong.

As Bella, Edward and Alice buzzed around her during lunch, Angela just sat and ate. Today she felt no need to keep up her guard around Edward, she just couldn't be bothered, and thinking that Edward could hear her thoughts made her feel paranoid and stupid. As she ate, she went over her schedule; she had double maths after lunch tomorrow, with a period of literature beforehand. Tomorrow might be interesting.

As her mind floated into thoughts of Jasper Hales weird behavior, and constant surprises, she caught Edward stiffen and turn towards him. His eyes locked with Jasper and he seemed to whisper, Jaspers eyes burned with an emotion that Angela couldn't place and his eyes reminded her of embers flying from a fire, it was impossible she thought, that Edward could read her mind and whisper to Jasper what she was thinking, he could never have heard it and it could never have happened. It was impossible. Nevertheless, she began to recite _Romeo and Juliet_ again anyway.


	3. Chapter 3

Avoiding the Avoidable

Angela drifted through the morning in a daze, anxious and excited about the afternoon. Jasper Hale dragged up a lot of feelings in her but she pushed them all up to her will to help him. She thought that if she could even make him feel only the slightest bit included, or a little less shy, she would be happy. She wanted to help him more than anything she had ever wanted in her short and mundane existence, and she had wanted some big things. Nothing as shallow as a pony or a new dress, she had wanted justice and fairness and world peace and an end to world hunger or societies issues. But this, to her was more important.

As first break arrived, she took her seat at the usual table and waited for the others to come. First to arrive as usual were Jasper and Edward, from their advanced chemistry class. Jasper took his usual and drifted to his table, he glanced in her direction as he sat down and he smiled. Edward raised his eyebrows at this interaction as he sat down next to Angela, then struck up a conversation about the upcoming prom, a subject that brought Angela out of her thoughts as he asked her about her thoughts and her plans for the dance. Yes, she was on the prom committee, another thing that she just couldn't have said no to, but only because she wanted to help.

Biology skipped by quickly, Angela ignored Bella's attempts to get her attention, fearing that Edward had put her up to something, which by the looks of their whispering, he obviously had. The last minutes of class seemed dragged out, Mr. Banner had given them free time for the last ten minutes of class, and she knew that Bella was just waiting for the time to be perfect to make her move. A few minutes before the bell, Bella walked towards Angela.

"Hey Ange, can I talk to you for a minute?" Bella's eyes were soft and concerned, but Angela only had one person in mind, "really, it won't take long," she added. Angela looked at the clock then back to Bella smiling apologetically, she pushed away from her seat and stood facing her friend.

"I'm sorry Bells, but if I can be on time to literature for once I might be able to get on the teacher's good side. It's hard enough as it is you know? So how about I talk with you after school?" Angela knew her friend was slightly disappointed and slightly nervous, she nodded and meekly went back to her seat, as Bella talked quietly with Edward, Angela got permission from Mr. Banner to leave for literature. She hoped that she hadn't hurt Bella's feelings, and that her being first to literature wouldn't leave her sitting on her own again.

As she walked down the hall she could hear voices arguing quietly, she poked her head around the corner and saw Alice Cullen and Jasper Hale arguing in front of the literature door. "I can't believe you! How could you…why would…la tua cantante ugh…Arrrgh!" Alice Cullen whispered angrily at Jasper.

"I haven't done anything!" Jasper whispered back heatedly, "and this isn't the time or place for anything! I have literature, you have studio art, don't be late, I'll see you at home." His voice declared the end of the conversation, but Alice wasn't letting it go, Angela decided to step in.


	4. Chapter 4

Fueling the Fire

Ange took a deep breath and stepped around the corner, feigning surprise to see them there arguing and staring awkwardly at the couple. Alice huffed a little and glared at Angela, and then turned to Jasper, whispering something then storming off, it was something Angela hadn't expected, that kind of greeting from Alice was almost as impossible as mind reading. She let the hurt show on her face for a minute and then remembered that Jasper was still standing in the hallway looking at her.

"I, uh, I'm sorry to intrude, I didn't mean to cause trouble," she stammered out weakly, Alice's greeting had really gotten to her, it felt as if venom was pouring through her veins, and the light headedness she had felt the other day returned. Her books started to fall from her hands and her knees started to buckle, but before she had a chance to sink even a little way to the floor, Jasper had a hold of her waist and her arm, leaning her against him to support her. When he had safely helped her to a chair he returned to the hall for her books and she regained her composure.

"Thanks," she said as he set her books down on the desk, he smiled and pulled the chair next to her out to sit down. "I don't know what happened, I just felt light headed all of a sudden, really thank you."

"Its no problem, are you sure you're ok?" he asked with concern, she had only ever rarely heard him speak and usually not to her, it was a nice sound, kind of melodic, but still deep set and rich. She decided it was like red velvet, which was just how it seemed.

"I'm fine," she reassured him, leaning back in her chair a little, the queasiness was fading, but she wasn't sure she could take an hour of literature. She closed her eyes for a second, and when she opened them, Jasper was looking down at her with both his and her books in hand; he motioned for her to get up. "Where are we going?" Angela asked, slightly nervous but mostly curious.

"I think we both know, you're not quite up to literature today, so I thought we'd take a short break in the cafeteria." He smiled and led the way to the normally bustling lunch hall, but when they arrived and Jasper settled her into a table, there were only three other students and the lunch lady there. "I'll be right back," Jasper said heading for the cash register.

As Jasper bought a bottle of water from the lunch lady, Angela wondered how she was ever going to catch up in literature. Jasper and Alice's argument crossed her mind, but as she came to Alice's cold reception of her, she shut it out of her mind and focused on prom committee. She leant back and closed her eyes again, only to open them to find Jasper sitting opposite her and an open water bottle in her hand.

"Thanks," she said as she smiled and sipped at her water. Jasper was watching her intently, and for some reason this unnerved her. Angela had never expected the day to go this way. She had figured after intruding on Alice and Jasper, he would stay as far away from her as possible, yet here he was, sitting opposite her in the cafeteria, missing his literature class. _Strange behavior for_ _somebody that was supposed to be shy and quiet,_ she thought.

"Sorry about dragging you away from literature, it was the first time you've been on time to class," Jasper smiled teasingly and Angela laughed. "Sorry about outside the classroom to." His face was instantaneously serious, he looked somewhat guilty, but Angela had no idea what for.

"Its ok, I shouldn't have intruded, I'm sorry, and the fainting, you didn't have to skip class because of me." She bowed her head a little, she wasn't used to talking to Jasper, and the context of the conversation just made her think of Alice's cold hard expression again. The light-headedness returned.

"Are you sure you're feeling ok? I can take you to the nurses office, you don't look to well," Jasper still surprised her every time he talked, it would most definitely take some getting used to, if he ever spoke to her again.

"I'm feeling fine, I was just thinking of Alice," she told him. She could hear the hurt in her voice, and almost picture it spreading across her face, so she reined it back in, and took another sip of her water. She didn't need Jasper to know that Alice's chilling reception had hurt her feelings. She did not want to seem like a sappy damsel in distress. She just wanted to relax, and find out what she had done to upset Alice.

"It was nothing you did," Jasper suddenly said, "Alice and I had a bit of an argument, and I think you interrupted just as she was going to bite my head off, I'm sure she didn't mean to glare at you like that." He smiled a little, and then sat back in his chair, opening his literature book. "Sorry if she hurt your feelings," he said so quietly that Angela wasn't sure she was supposed to hear it.

"Only a little, I'll be fine," she said under her breath, looking at him study the notes on the page. He lifted his head after she had finished the sentence and anger flashed like fire in his eyes, the he went back to normal, and moved to her side of the table. He opened her notebook and smiled, writing in his elegant script some extra notes that might help her catch up. She watched him for the rest of the period, and as the bell rang for lunch and he packed up he smiled.

"Do you want anything for lunch?" he asked her, lifting both sets of books and placing them on his chair. Angela looked toward the lunch menu and took some money out of her pocket.

"Just an apple maybe," she said, pushing her chair back. Just before she could get up, Jasper pushed her chair back in.

"Coming up, you can just sit here," he said smiling. Angela held the money out to him, but he just smiled, gently pushing her hand away. As Jasper headed toward the counter, Angela saw Edward walk in with Emmet and Rosalie, who had just finished gym. They glanced at Angela and she realized she was sitting at Jaspers table. As he waltzed back over with her apple, and another bottle of water, he nodded at his siblings; they nodded back dazedly, and took their usual seats.

"Thanks, but you didn't have to buy it for me," Angela said as Jasper sat down next to her again, moving their books onto the table. He just smiled and looked around the room. Bella and the others had just arrived and they were all sitting down at the usual spot with Edward and the others. But Alice was frozen in the doorway, glaring at Ange and Jasper. "Maybe, I should move," Angela said to Jasper, refusing to meet his gaze and pushing her chair back to get up.

"Don't be silly," Jasper said to her, putting his arm around the back of her chair, "we can all sit where we like, and there is plenty of room for Alice to join us, besides, I hardly ever get to talk with anyone, and you need some help with your literature work." He smiled at her easily, like they were old friends, and he continued to ignore Alice's fuming from the doorway. But Angela couldn't.

"I think I need to go home," she said to Jasper as her queasiness returned, she could not take her eyes off Alice's glaring form, and the more she looked the fainter she felt. "Do you think you could take some notes for me in maths?" she asked Jasper as she stood from her chair. He nodded with worry and Angela nodded as well. "Thanks for lunch, and the notes, and sorry." Her voice was barely above a whisper the whole time, and it took all her strength to turn from Alice and run out the cafeteria door on the other side of the room. As she made it into the corridor her knees began to weaken and she sank to the floor below her locker. Her breathing was fast and so was her heart. She was terrified, more so than she had ever been in her life, and it was making her terribly sick. She rested her head on her knees and everything went black.


	5. Chapter 5

Resting with Reality

As Angela came to she recognized the peppermint coloured walls of the nurses office. She felt horrible. Her neck was stiff and her back ached, as she sat up a cold compress fell onto her knees, and she stretched her numb legs. She couldn't remember what had happened, all she could think of was Jaspers kindness and Alice's horrible anger.

"Ange are you ok?" Angela took a few minutes to focus and found the source of the rich noise. Jasper was looking down at her, worry and relief sketched into his perfect face. "Ange are you ok?" he asked again, thinking she had not heard him the first time.

"I'm fine, what happened?" she answered him, swinging her legs off the cramped hospital cot and trying to stand. Her knees buckled and Jasper caught her, supporting her weight as she regained control over her legs.

"I found you passed out in the hallway, I wanted to return your literature books," he had a small frown on his face as he talked to her, and she began to worry about him again.

"Um, I think I'm right to stand now," she said, having Jasper take his arms from around her, "I also think it might be best if I go home." She walked slowly to the door and into the hallway, heading to the main office. As she rounded the corner she glimpsed the clock, it was three thirty and if she didn't run the ten blocks to the primary school she would be late to pick up her brothers. Her legs groaned at the thought and she rested against the corner, trying to think of what to do.

"Angela, are you ok? Do you want a lift home?" Jasper asked form behind her, coming up and looking into her eyes as if he was a trained medical professional. "Wait here," he said as he jogged the short distance to the main office and signed them both out of the nurse's office. "Come on, you won't be able to walk home in that condition."

"Uh, I have to pick up my brothers, and I don't want to put you or your family out," Angela stuttered trying to get out of the horror of riding home with Alice and the other Cullen's.

"It's ok, we can pick up your brothers and I told the others that they'd have to ride home with Edward and Bella, they don't mind." Jasper grabbed a pile of books from the nurse's station and gently maneuvered Angela to his car by the elbow. They were at the primary school with ten minutes to spare before Angela's brothers sporting practice was done. Jasper flipped open his maths book and took out the notes he had copied for Angela. She took them with a smile and a thank you, and then got out of the car to wait for the twins.

As she waited she saw Jasper answer his phone and quietly whisper to someone on the other end of the call, he didn't look mad or upset, Angela was glad. As the twins piled noisily into the car teasing Angela for her new 'boyfriend' jasper hung up the phone, but not before Angela could hear the 'good-bye Alice' on the end. Immediately she tensed and began to feel dizzy, but before it could get to bad, waves of calm seemed to radiate through the car. She breathed in and out deeply and smiled at Jasper. She was acting silly. Alice Cullen was not scary, nor was she a threat, and Edward couldn't read minds. She relaxed, reality had brought her back down to earth, and somehow shushed her brothers, and Jasper she hoped, was no longer lonely, Angela was glad.


	6. Chapter 6

Time of Torment

Angela took the rest of the week off school. Her parents had heard about her fainting spells from the school nurse and insisted she take time off and relax, so on Monday morning as she walked into school, she had forgotten all about her troubles with the Cullens.

As she floated through her morning, she realized that Edward and Alice weren't in any of their classes. She hoped that they wouldn't be away long, Bella tended to get anxious and upset easily when Edward wasn't around, and it hurt Angela to see her at the point of panic all day long. To her relief, Edward showed up around first break.

Bella and Edward were talking quietly in the lunch line as Angela approached. Bella smiled in greeting and Edward gave her a slight wave, and as they all took their seats Angela asked about Alice. Bella frowned and Edward excused himself, as he got up from his seat, and dumped his lunch, Jasper walked into the room. He looked like a shadow of his former self, his eyes no longer burned with passion, they only swirled with sadness and misunderstanding.

"Alice has gone to stay with the Cullens cousins for a while," Bella said quietly, looking at Jasper. She turned back to Angela and smiled faintly, but all Angela could do was stare at Jasper and Edward, talking quietly and heatedly among themselves. Angela picked up her tray and went to dump it in the trash, she suddenly didn't feel like eating. As she passed Jasper and Edward their talking became more hushed and Angela knew Alice's leaving had something to do with her. The hurt was almost as bad as the fear she had felt the previous week.

The bell rang and Angela grabbed her maths books from her locker. She had a single period before lunch, then biology and after lunch a double period of literature. She dreaded the hours to come. As she took her normal seat in maths, across the right side of the room, she wondered what she had done to make Alice so mad at her. She hadn't said or done anything that could drive her away, and unless there was some large misunderstanding, or Alice could see the future and something bad was going to happen she couldn't imagine that Alice's leaving was her fault, but she knew, somehow she just knew that she had forced Alice to leave, and it was breaking her on the inside.

For once Angela had been the first to class, she had taken her seat and still had a few minutes before anyone else arrived, her early lunch departure had assured that. But sitting in her seat all on her own, struggling through maths problems that she didn't always understand just seemed too much for her to handle with her latest knowledge of Alice's departure. She grabbed her books and walked quickly out the door, but just as she turned round the corner she ran straight into the one person she felt she had hurt the most. Jasper Hale.

"Hey Ange," he said casually, ignoring the pricks of tears that she was sure he could see in the corners of her eyes, "aren't you coming to maths today? You missed a fair bit last week, I copied some notes for you, I was going to help you catch up this lesson." He smiled and put his hand on her elbow, turning her towards the classroom, she wiped her eyes and walked along with him, remaining silent until they were both seated at the back of the room.

"Thanks for the notes and well…everything else," she said meaningfully, looking into his golden eyes, "I'm sorry about Alice, I heard during first break this morning." She looked away toward the front of the room while she said this. She didn't want to cross the line, and she felt that was exactly what she had done, considering she was the one that had forced Alice to go.

"Don't mention it," Jasper said kindly, smiling at Angela when she finally turned around, ignoring her comment about Alice, "I can help you catch up during lunch if you want, but if you want to stay and hang out with the others its fine, we can study another time."

"Lunch sounds fine," Angela replied, smoothing out her voice and putting on a fake smile, he knew she was sure, that she knew she was to blame for Alice's departure, and he knew, she thought, that she would do anything not to have to sit through lunch with Edward and Bella, and all their worry.

"Angela," Jasper said at the end of class, "you weren't the reason Alice left." He began slowly, as if he was choosing his words carefully to hide something. "She has always been a little flighty, she likes to move around and make new friends, she's very excited and flamboyant, and she just needed a change." He smiled and handed Angela her books, but his eyes started to shimmer again with the same misunderstanding and sadness of the morning.

"Thank you," Angela said, and she knew that Jasper understood she was not just thanking him for his help or for handing her, her books; she was thanking him for his support.


	7. Chapter 7

Lively not Lonely

Biology passed in a blur and Angela went straight to the cafeteria. She placed her books on her usual table and figured she could get them later; she entered the lunch line behind some sophomores and waved to Jasper as he walked in. Ignoring the stares from Edward and Bella, Jasper took Angela's books from the table and put them with his own on the other side of the room. He then came over to Angela and put some extra food on her plate, then paid the lunch lady.

"You don't have to pay every time I eat lunch with you," Angela joked as she placed the tray in the middle of the table between her and Jasper. He smiled from across the table and handed her a calculator, then opened his own maths book and flicked to the notes he'd made her at the back.

"I thought we'd go over some trigonometry, then maybe some parabolas, you can keep that calculator, I think you'll need it." He smiled and winked and then picked at a bagel he had grabbed from the lunch line. Angela tried to protest, but Jasper wouldn't hear any sentence or word that involved the taking back of his gift, eventually she gave up. She slid the case off the calculator and a note fell out, Jasper smirked and put his finger to his lips, motioning with his free hand to Edward and Bella, who appeared to be eavesdropping on their conversation. Angela gave a puzzled expression, and jasper handed her a pen, she scribbled a quick note.

_How could they hear us from the other side of the room? That's impossible._

_Nothing _ _ is impossible, besides, you never know who will overhear something and spread it around as gossip._

_I suppose you're right._

Angela smiled at Jasper from opposite him at the table; she opened the note and found an elegantly scripted invitation, it said at the top:

Please Say Yes…

Jasper Hale requests the presence of Miss Angela Weber

At his birthday celebration.

Date: 17th of November

Time: Twelve Thirty

Place: The Forks Reserve

What Do You Say??

Angela smiled and Jasper pretended to show her a maths problem, she scribbled him a note on the page, _Yes, and thank-you._ Jaspers eyes began to fire up again, the liveliness had returned, Angela was relieved, she still felt awful about Alice, but she was glad that Jasper did not hold her responsible. More than anything she still wanted Jasper to be happy, and she wanted to be the one to make him happy.


	8. Chapter 8

Little bit of Love

Angela's week was a blur of goods and bads. Jasper had spent every lunch with her since she accepted his invitation and he had helped her catch up in all her classes. Alice was still the down point of Angela's week. Every time she saw Jasper she could only feel that she was the cause of all his pain over Alice and that perhaps she wasn't good enough to be around him, no matter how much she made Jasper smile or laugh, she always thought of how much pain she must have caused him by driving Alice away.

As she strolled down the path toward the Forks Reserve, she began to feel nervousness and doubt. With all the pain she had caused Jasper was it really right for her to attend his birthday? What if this was a cruel joke he designed to get back at her for all the things between her and Alice? If he really thought about it, would he turn her away? She shook her head and angrily mumbled to herself, Jasper would never do those things, he would never hurt her like that. They were friends.

Just as she turned the corner, in sight of the reserve, Jasper came jogging up to her from her right; he smiled and grabbed her hand winking as he jogged with her towards the pavilion. As they entered, Angela saw the food and decorations Jasper had set up for his birthday. There were all of her favourites, chocolate brownies, strawberries, quiches, cupcakes, biscuits and a cake. He had spread all this out on a blanket on the floor, around the pavilion, fairy lights twinkled as white as snow and metallic black balloons bobbed around the sides. It was perfect. "Wow," was all she could say.

"Its not to bad if I do say so myself," Jasper laughed, as he led her to the blanket and let go of her hand, "you look nice by the way." Angela blushed and brushed her hand over her black and white lace top, she shrugged her bag from her shoulder and rummaged around inside. Her hand gripped the card and gift she had brought for Jasper, and she hesitated before pulling it out to give to him. "You didn't have to get me anything," Jasper, said, surprise and shock showing on his face, he took the gift carefully from Angela and sat it on his lap.

"It was the least I can do after you tutoring me in all of my classes this week, and the five lunches you've bought me," Angela said smiling. She looked around at all the food and decorations. It must have taken him over an hour to set up all the lights and balloons, not to mention how long it must've taken to cook all the food.

"Do you like everything?" Jasper asked gesturing at the food and the pavilion. He smiled softly, then looked down at his gift and opened it. He didn't tear any of the paper even though it was just a plain black shiny square that Angela had found round the house before she left. His eyes shone when he pulled out the black photo frame, emblazoned with gold roses, his name was written elegantly in gold in the top right hand corner and in white behind it was a painted snow leopard. He turned the frame over in his hands and in the bottom left hand corner in the same neat writing was a gold script, it read: _from Angela…_

"Everything is great," Angela said, looking around, "sorry about the photo frame, I couldn't think what to get you so… anyway I hope you like it." Angela blushed and looked at the floor, raising her eyes only as she heard Jasper stand up.

"I love it Ange," he said earnestly, waiting for her to stand and when she had, taking her hand and leading her out of the pavilion. "You are the only person that ever tried to reach out to me," he began as they walked, "Alice always assumed we were the same, but we never were. You knew when I was broken, and you reached out to fix me, I had my brother stand in your way, and he in turn had your friends stand there with him, but you never left my mind and I was always hoping that you'd break through the challenges and help me face mine," he smiled down at her and she blushed, but for once she didn't take her eyes off his, this was their moment. "When Alice left, I thought I would be a wreck, but when you were around, I forgot she even existed. You saved me from my suffering and it killed me that you felt you weren't good enough to be around me or that you had caused me pain. All I want is for you to be happy, I really like you Ange, and you are the only person that I have ever felt this way about." He made a sound like a sigh and took both her hands in his, instead of just the one, he looked down at her and smiled, his eyes burned with a fire that Angela had seen so many times before, a fire that she loved.

"I, I, uh…I don't know what to say, I," Angela stuttered and blushed, but Jasper still held her gaze. He bent his head down so that his eyes were level and lent his forehead against hers.

"Just tell me if you love me to," he said smiling, as Angela's blush became deeper and her breath started to come in shorter gasps.

"I love you to," she said, tilting her head up and kissing him. She loved his smell and his taste and his voice of red velvet, and she loved his personality and the fire of his eyes. She loved how she had, in his opinion, saved him and she loved how in return he seemed to save her from all the things she was to weak or to afraid to fight on her own. As they broke apart for Angela to breath Jasper pulled her into his arms. He was cold, even though for Forks it was a relatively warmish day, and he was wearing a sweater and a jacket, but Angela didn't care, if his touch didn't warm her, his most important gift could; his heart.


	9. Chapter 9

Murderer at Midnight

Angela cuddled against Jasper as the afternoon turned to evening. The night was cold but so was he. She ignored it and stayed where she was. She was comfortable and for now she was happy. It came as a mystery to her that they had been huddled together for most of the afternoon, yet he hadn't gotten any warmer at all. She pushed her thoughts away. It didn't matter, they loved each other and they were together.

"Angela…" Jasper began, he had done this all evening, he would start a sentence, trying to say something important it seems, but he would never finish. "Angela, do you believe in ghosts?" he moved slightly and looked down at her, a small frown playing on his lips.

"My father is the town priest, he says that things of the supernatural don't exist, but I always believed even when I was younger, that witches, wizards, warlocks and vampires were running around somewhere in our world. I know it sounds strange, probably childish, but I still believe that all these things are out there," Angela said, smiling up at Jasper. By now he had stiffened slightly, his frown very apparent now. "Why?" Angela asked him.

"If you found out that vampires really were running around the world, would you be afraid of them?" he asked without answering her question.

"I guess I would have to say yes, they do suck peoples blood after all. But I also believe that there is good in everything, even monsters, so maybe there are vampires out there that don't drink from humans, or maybe vampires that do but without killing them," Angela's face was lost in thought for a second. She was thinking of all the possibilities, sifting through them all and weighing her answer, she was happy with it.

"Angela, would you believe me if I told you something unbelievable?" he asked, looking at her gently and snuggling her closer to him.

"Yes, I would believe anything you told me."

"I can feel what other people are feeling Ange, I can tell when they're depressed or when they're scared or when they're doubtful. That's how I knew that you thought you'd caused me pain or that you thought you weren't good enough for me. Its how I know that you truly love me and that you'll be open minded enough to except what I have and what I have yet to tell you." Jasper was so still that she thought he was asleep, his words hadn't surprised her, she had known deep down that something like this was going to come. She loved him still and she accepted his gift, but still only momentarily did she dread what other news might be to come.

"If you're scared I'll know, and if you don't want to see me again I'll disappear, but I love you Ange, and I have to tell you everything." He looked down at her and she lifted her hand up and stroked his cheek with the back of her hand. She wanted his truth and his honesty; she would believe him and she would never want him to disappear. "Angela today is my birthday. I'm nineteen years old, and this has been my nineteenth birthday since 1863. I'm a vegetarian vampire," Jasper almost whispered this to quietly for Angela to hear. The news shocked her a little, but she wasn't afraid. Well she was, but only a little.

"What do you mean by vegetarian?" Angela asked, making sure to keep eye contact with Jasper and to continue to stroke his cheek and his hair.

"I don't drink the blood of humans," he began, taking her hand in his and linking their fingers, "I only drink the blood of animals." He gave her a second to process the information and all of her fear and doubt disappeared, he trusted her with his secrets and she trusted him with her heart. She snuggled back into him and he seemed to radiate relief, _with his gift_, she thought, _he probably did_. As night began to fall, Angela began to get drowsy. "I think its time I got you home," jasper said as he kissed her on the forehead.

"I want to stay with you," she said quietly, "I want to ask you some questions, and I want to have this day last forever."

"I can stay with you as long as you like," Jasper said, "I don't sleep, and you can ask me all of your questions in the morning, because I won't have gone anywhere, and you can commit to memory this day for as long as you can, and if you forget I'll help you remember." He smiled and kissed her forehead again, she sleepily agreed to his ideas and he drove her home. As she slept she was sure that Jasper was nearby. Even in her dreams she could feel his presence like she was awake and looking at him. His every movement no matter how silent seemed to echo forever in her mind, her dreamland.


	10. Chapter 10

Evil as the Enemy

Every morning Angela woke to find Jasper smiling at her from the floor. She always found him doing something new, one time he was reading, the next he was writing, another time to her great surprise he had knitted a scarf. She always found him a constant surprise and no matter how awful or yucky she felt in the morning his smile would melt her insides and her worries would seep away.

One night she woke to Jaspers harsh whispering, and was afraid that her dad had found him in her room, but when she rolled over and focused her eyes, she saw him talking on his small mobile phone, he glanced at her and smiled but returned quickly to arguing with the person on the other end of the line. Not wanting to intrude, Angela hopped out of bed and went to the bathroom. Glancing at the clock in that hall she noticed it was five o'clock in the morning, figuring she was going to be up in a few hours anyway, she had a quick shower, got ready and went back to her room.

As she entered the room she noticed Jasper had finished his phone call and was waiting for her, sitting on the end of her bed. His face was solemn and his eyes were flashing with anger and burning with resentment rather than the smoldering calm and peace that she usually saw. As she came and sat on the bed next to him, he wrapped his arms around her. She kissed the palm of his hand and shut her eyes, resting quietly for a minute. Jasper broke the silence.

"I just spoke with Edward and Bella on the phone," he said carefully. After Angela had discovered the family secret a slight resentment had formed between some members of the family. Esme and Carlisle were mostly on Jaspers side, but Rosalie and Emmett refused to accept that another human had been brought into their circle, Edward and Bella were with Jasper as well, but Edwards relationship with Alice, and the upset Jaspers new path had caused her made him slightly bitter, his attitude to Angela had caused Jasper to become edgy toward his family, but this seemed important, he was not even skirting around their names.

"What is it?" Angela asked him with worry. She had only seen him this serious once, when he told her he was a vampire. He sighed and massaged his forehead, moving away from Angela and off the bed, she was stuck by a sudden sense of panic and dread. Maybe he was leaving her like Edward left Bella, or maybe he was leaving her for Alice. His head moved around so quickly that Angela thought he had spun it around on its own, his eyes became less cloudy and in an instant he was kneeling in front of her.

"Why are you panicking? Are you ok, what's the matter Ange?" he whispered quickly. She hadn't seen him so concerned since she had woken up in the nurses office, his worry lessened her panic, but her dread remained, the little voice that had always told her she wasn't good enough and that he would leave her for Alice became louder and she couldn't answer him. "Angela, Angela, don't panic, everything will be fine, I won't leave you," he soothed her, hugging her tightly to his chest. Angela breathed deeply.

"What did Edward and Bella have to say?" she asked, pulling back from Jasper a little, so she could look into his eyes.

"The Volturi are coming to solve a nearby newborn problem, Edward is taking Bella and hiding her so that they wont change her, and hopefully if we can sort out the newborns we can avoid having them come here at all. They're dangerous Angie, if they find out you know about us they'll try and kill you, my family isn't strong enough to fight them, there's too many, they'd be slaughtered," Jasper made a sigh like noise of defeat and bowed his head to the floor, "I couldn't live if they got to you, you have to go with Bella and Edward." His eyes burned with sorrow and regret, and Angela refused to let him go. She would not leave him and hide.

"No," she said, tears forming at the corners of her eyes, "no, and don't try it Jasper, don't try and make me, no." He raised his head and looked her in the eyes, his face was twisted into sadness and she was sure if the tears could run from his eyes they would, but all they did was turn the fire into a river of gold.

"Ange, please, you have to go, I can't fight them with you around, I'll be distracted and the chances of both of us getting hurt will quadruple. I wont let you see me fight like a monster. We're evil when we transform like that, we're as evil as all of our enemies. You have to go." His face was crumpling and emotions that Angela had only ever heard of began to appear, he reminded her of a burning man, she would not leave him to face the fire alone.

"Come with me," she said, resting her hand on his cheek, "we can all run away together." She smiled as the tears ran down her cheeks and she threw herself into Jaspers arms. She would not leave him, she would stay or they would both go he had to choose.


	11. Chapter 11

Friday we Fight

Jasper and Angela arranged to go to France on Thursday night with Edward and Bella, this way it would appear that they were just on vacation. The Volturi were due on the Friday if Carlisle's information was correct. On Wednesday to raise the families' spirit, Esme called a baseball game. Bella and Angela sat down at the edge of the field. Jasper was first batter and Edward second, Jasper's exciting influence was so catching that Edward and Emmett were wrestling playfully in wait of their turns.

"Are you scared?" Bella asked Angela seriously as jasper whirred around the bases. Her voice had quivered and her eyes were blue from lack of sleep. She looked drained and frightened.

"Yes," Angela whispered in reply, sure that the others could hear her anyway. "Jasper can feel it, he stays awake with me every night and tells me everything will be ok, he calms me. But I know that he's scared and unsure, I see it in his eyes and hear it in his voice, it frightens me more than the waiting or the possibilities, the fact that he thinks something will go wrong." She looked at Bella, and they both half smiled. They hugged as Edward and jaspers team scored another home run and pretended nothing was wrong. They needed to, they knew, if they didn't they'd surely become sick with worry.

As Jasper moved agilely through the bases and Edward scored more and more home runs, the wind changed, sending the girls hair flying around their faces. In seconds Jasper and Edward were at their sides. Edward crouched near Bella in a protective stance, small snarls escaping his mouth. Jasper tried to calm him but Angela could feel that his heart wasn't in it, he looked worried, and as he crouched in front of her and narrowed his eyes at the trees like a predator, she heard his ripping growls for the first time.

Faster than Angela, the other Cullens had understood what was going on immediately. Carlisle and Emmett had taken up a protective stance in front of the two couples and Rosalie and Esme had flanked their husbands. Bella had moved closer to Angela and she felt her grip her hand. As Bella pulled her hood over her hair Angela reached out to Jasper. Without looking at her he grabbed her hand and clasped it in his own behind his back. Bella pulled Angela's own hood over her head for her and silently put her arm around Angela's shoulders.

Seven vampires stalked into the clearing the Cullens had been playing on only a moment ago. Angela liked the odds, but she remembered a conversation she had had with Jasper not long ago. He had explained that he had a gift and that not many other vampires did, he had told her about Edward and he had told her about the Volturi.

"They rarely ever accept a vampire that doesn't have a talent like mine or Edwards. While they value my talent, it is nothing compared to Edwards, they would stop at nothing to get him, and Bella, they were extremely interested in her. I won't ever let them near you Ange, but if you ever did meet them, Jane, Felix and Demetri are the ones to watch out for. They're like the advanced guard, Jane causes pain through the mind, Felix is super fast and Demetri is extra strong. They are great fighters…"

Angela looked on helplessly as the seven beasts strolled towards the Cullens. They walked arrogantly like an animal that knows they've cornered their pray. From jaspers descriptions, she recognized Felix, Jane and Demetri. She saw Jane's twin Alec, and the attractive female Heidi, but there were two that she just couldn't recognize and it appeared that no one else could either.

"Hello again Carlisle," the short girl, Jane said. She whipped her head around and surveyed the rest of the Cullens, her gaze resting on Edward and Bella. "Naughty, naughty," she tutted sarcastically at Edward as she motioned forward the two new vampires. She began to give a command, but as the breeze blew forward Angela's hood flew off her head and gave her scent away. Jane froze with a devious smile on her face, "looks like another Cullen has broken the rules, Carlisle what will Aro say when he finds out that you have raised such naughty children?"

Jasper froze in front of Angela as his instincts began to take over, his grip became tighter and continued to harden, Angela could feel her hand slowly and agonizingly breaking, she whimpered softly and Bella gripped her shoulders tighter. Edward looked over at Jasper for a spilt second and jerked his head in Emmett direction. Emmett came over to Angela and removed her hand from Jaspers, he crouched behind her and Bella with a hand on each their shoulders, ready to jerk them away if necessary.

Jane seemed fascinated by Angela's behaviour, and as Felix and Demetri began to advance on the Cullens, she called them back. "We were told to leave them alone, we only want Edward and Bella," she snapped, still staring at Angela, "however I think Aro will like it if we bring these two with us." She smiled and a growl ripped from Jaspers throat, screaming in the air like thunder. Emmett's hand tightened on the girls' shoulders and the two vampires that Jane had called forward stepped to the front of the group. "I'd like to introduce you to the latest members of our happy family," she said gaily, not taking her eyes off Angela, "these are Paolo and Caleb, twins from Venice, they possess an enviable talent."

Edward cursed loudly enough for the girls to hear, this struck Angela as not a good sign. "They can mess with the mind as well, but its worse than Jane, Caleb reads peoples fears and Paolo makes them come to life in the mind of the victim." Most of the Cullens cursed under their breath, Emmett swore loudly and fled to Rosalie's side, standing protectively in front of her. Bella moved in front of Angela, just as Edward moved to Jaspers side. Angela had been frozen in panic and now she was envious, Jasper had also explained Bella's mysterious gift, but she hadn't realized the value of it until this moment.

Jane motioned to the vampires and they focused on Bella, she remained sitting in front of Angela, with no problems, her shield had held. Only slightly discouraged, Jane focused the boys on Edward. Emmett acted in the last possible second to pin him to the ground, Edward writhing in anger and pain on the ground, would have jumped straight to his death if he had attacked Jane. He swore and growled cursing them for killing his Bella. The power shocked Jasper out of his daze. Jane noticing jaspers movements in front of Angela forced the twins to stop their torture of Edward. As Emmett released his hold, Bella leapt in front of Edward, clinging to him and crying from frustration and fear.

Jasper immediately jumped in front of Angela, Bella's movement had left her open and he was scared for her. Edward hugged Bella, he kissed her hair and tried to calm her, urging her back to Angela, but she was too distraught. He only had a millisecond to jump over to Jasper and push him to the ground before the twins had a hold on him. Emmett yanked Angela to her feet gently but quickly and Rosalie stepped in front of her. They all knew that Angela would not survive long under the pressure of her fears and her weak human heart they were her only chance, Demetri and Felix were keeping Carlisle and Esme busy and Edward had swung around to face Heidi and Alec. Caleb had managed somehow to get a read on Angela's fears, Edward alerted the others but Caleb's job being done, he attacked, distracting Rosalie and Emmett.

Angela screamed as the world went black around her, her vision fixed itself and she looked around her. The clearing was blood red and the Cullens were nowhere to be seen. She walked forward, but as she tripped on something she looked down. The bodies of her twin brothers lay at her feet, ravaged by beasts, and as she took a closer look at the ground she saw the bodies of her friends and other family members littering the field, turning the grass into a sea of blood. She stumbled back in shock, her thoughts to numb for her to feel the terror that she was sure was to come.

As she stumbled backwards she ran into something cold and hard. She stopped and turned, only to find jaspers body, limbs pulled off and attached with sticks so that he would not come back to life, but still resembled his old self. She looked at his black eyes and the nothingness she saw there enveloped her. She felt the loss of every person she had ever known or loved and each one felt like a knife through her body. She looked down at her hands and her sides and saw the blood pouring from millions of wounds, running into a pool of sadness at her feet. Her friends and family were dead, she was dying herself, and she was all alone. As she crumpled to the ground, she saw the young vampire Paolo walk towards her. The black was engulfing her quickly, but she still heard his words, they burnt like swords of fire being stuck through her heart _"you caused this, they caused this, die as you lived, weak and alone." _He laughed at her and threw jaspers pieced together body down next to her, she let the blackness come.

Her relief was not long lasted. Five minutes later she awoke to the sounds of leaves falling. She opened her eyes and stood up, autumn leaves were falling all around her and she had no wounds. There was no death and there was no fear. Angela sighed; she had given into the blackness, was she dead?

For a moment she panicked. She had left Jasper alone with his helpless family and the Volturi in the clearing. She had broken her promise. The sadness and grief of loss tore at her insides. She let herself be engulfed by the fearsome echo of loneliness. As she stood facing the trees she realized that the leaves were not really falling, but that they were frozen in midair, the sounds of their falling not quite in sync with their actions. She looked around and saw all the faults surrounding her. The birds were stopped in midair, the squirrels scuttling across the ground frozen at her feet. Her panic swelled and her fear returned, she was alone in a strange place.

As she stumbled towards the trees she felt the strange sensation of someone putting their arms around her. She looked around but there was no one there, she was alone, she was hurt and she was desperate. _"Shhhhhh…_" she heard, _"don't panic, I'm here, I'll always be with you…" _Angela recognized the voice it was Jasper.

"Ja, Jasper," she choked through her tears, relief coursing through her body, "I'm sorry they killed you, I'm sorry I left." She could barely talk now that she was so distraught, she could feel his arms around her, she could hear his voice but she couldn't see him.

"_They didn't kill me, and you never left me," _he whispered soothingly, _"I know you noticed it, the way the leaves and the birds are all frozen in time, Edward told me, you know this is a trick Angela, you know that Paolo is after you…you know that I love you and would never lie." _

Angela looked around one last time. What jasper was saying made a lot of sense, and she knew he could never lie to her. As Paolo's world began to crash around her, she could see jasper fading into view, his arms wrapped around her and his body perfectly intact. The sounds of the others cleaning up the debris from the fight was like the sound of one hundred wild animals all growling at once compared to the quiet loneliness of her dream world. It hurt.

"Angela?" Jasper asked as her eyes became unclouded. She threw herself into his arms and refused to let him go. He held her and soothed her, whispering words of encouragement and praise for what she had gone through. As Carlisle checked her hand, Jasper rocked her in his arms. She was back in the real world, with her Jasper, and they were both happy.

"You've got two broken fingers, the ring finger and your pinky," Carlisle said, methodically taping her fingers together, "you've also managed to fracture three bones in your hand, your going to be in a cast for a while." As Carlisle spoke Jasper's jaw hardened, his eyes smoldered and waves of self-hatred washed through his eyes.

"Does it have to be a cast? I really can't even feel it, is there some kind of brace or something?" Angela asked, worried about Jasper and her parents' reaction. She leant on jasper and winced as Carlisle put the brace on her hand. It had only taken a minute for Edward to run back wit his medical bag after the fight. For once Bella had escaped injury, and Angela was the only one that was hurt.

"Hey," Bella said, walking over to Angela and jasper as they argued about the cast, "can I have a minute Ange?" she smiled and rocked back and forth on her heels, she looked nervous as if she thought they'd say no.

"Sure," Angela told her, walking over after jasper had set her on her feet, "I'm really sorry about all the fuss."

"No, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have left you like that. I know what its like against the Volturi and vengeful vampires, I'm so sorry Ange," Bella hugged her and in turn she forgave her, she had never blamed Bella anyway, and she told her so.

"Hey for once it wasn't you that got hurt, this must be a first," Angela joked, raising her hand in the air, the movement caused ripples of pain and she wondered again what she was going to say to her parents.

"Angela, are you ok?" Jasper asked quietly, his arms winding around her sides, his sudden presence startled her and she flinched, he withdrew his arms immediately. "We decided while you two were talking that your excuse should be that you broke your hand sliding into home base, if you have a different idea let us know, I'll have Edward and Bella drive you home if you want," Jasper said, not taking his eyes off of her hand.

"No, its ok, can you take me, I want to talk to you," she replied smiling slightly. Jasper nodded and went back to Edward and Emmett, collecting the car keys and walking back, Bella made a motion for Angela to call her and went to Edward. Jasper took her to the car.

"Is your hand ok?" he asked as she tried and failed to click the seatbelt together. She smiled and nodded, trying the seatbelt again.

"It really doesn't hurt that much, umm, could you give me a hand with this?" she sighed and gestured to the seatbelt, Jasper clicked it together and started the car, the engine idled then failed, the car stopped.

"I'll get Rosalie," jasper said undoing Angela's seatbelt and getting out of the car. He pulled her door open and helped her out, then went for a quick word with Rosalie. As japer talked, Edward walked over to Angela.

"He thinks you're afraid of him and that you want to break up with him," he said quietly, gesturing at Jasper.

"But I don't, I'm not afraid of him, why would he think that?" Angela asked him stunned; she couldn't imagine why Jasper would think that, couldn't he feel that she loved him?

"You flinched away from him when he hugged you, he broke your hand and you went through hell with the Volturi, your worry must have masked the love, its only natural that after all this he would think that you were to afraid to be with him," Edward spoke from experience she knew. Jasper had told her about Edward and Bella, he had also told her about their time apart and with the Volturi.

"How do I fix it?" she asked worriedly, if Jasper was convinced like Edward had been about Bella, he'd try leave her forever. She wouldn't be able to stand it.


	12. Chapter 12

Running through Rainstorms

Angela sat on the curb, waiting for Rosalie to finish the car. Edward had been right it seemed Jasper hadn't come near her for over half an hour. He hadn't been able to give her an answer to her question, apparently Jasper was stubborn, and she had to figure out how to convince him herself. Lost in thought, she didn't realize that Jasper was standing close by waiting for her.

"Angela, Rosalie can't fix the car, it looks like it needs some parts replaced, I'm going to have to run you home, I can get Emmett to take you if you like," he looked down at her on the side of the road and frowned at her hand.

"No, I want you to take me but before you drop me home can you take me to the forest near my house?" she smiled up at him and went to take his hand, he pulled it away quickly and nodded his head, Edward waved at Angela as Jasper lifted her onto his back.

"You won't be able to hold on very well so I'll have to carry you bridal style I think," jasper said after five minutes of running. He pulled her around from his back and held her in his arms; it took them only five more minutes to reach the wooded area near Angela's.

"If you go forward in a bit deeper you'll come to a marker, it's a red flag, turn right there until you reach the blue flag then turn right again, go in deep until I tell you," Angela instructed, nursing her broken hand against her stomach and looping her other arm around the back of Jasper's neck. She felt him lean back into her touch then stiffen and correct himself as he followed her directions.

"Stop here," she said happily. Having Jasper set her down, she grabbed is hand and led him deeper into the forest area. "This is my place," she said, smiling at Jasper and twisting her arms around his waist, "and I wanted to share it with you before we left for France." Jasper looked down at her confusion swirling around in his eyes.

"We don't have to go to France now, the Volturi have been, and Ange, you don't have to stay with me just because you're scared, I'll still protect you even if you don't want to be with me, we won't let them hurt you," Jasper had taken hold of her broken hand in both of his, his touch was so gentle that she couldn't believe he had been the one o break it.

"Jasper, we paid for the tickets we may as well still go, and after todays events I think I need a vacation," Angela protested, "and you need to stop blaming yourself for my hand, you explained everything to me the night you told me you were a vampire, I knew what was going on, and Jasper, I trust you to protect me forever, I love you please, please don't leave me," tears welled in her eyes and she looked up at him, "please."

"I promise Ange, that I'll protect you forever, I won't leave you unless you ask me to, my la tua cantante," he said, kissing the top of her head. Angela laughed and pulled his face down to hers, as they pulled apart she looked towards the trees. Autumn leaves fell in a rainbow of colours at their feet and the sun sank below the horizon as it began to rain. Jasper scooped her back up into his arms and kissed her again, "I guess its time for me to meet your parents," he said happily, running with her through the forest. Angela laughed, she was happy with her Jasper, and he was smiling again, they were running through the rainstorm, and they had forever ahead of them, they would run through more.


End file.
